Shirt protector



Sept. 25, 1956 o. v. CARPER SHIRT PROTECTOR Filed Feb. 9

INVENTOR ATTORNEY United fitates Patent Ofiice 2,764,280 i a'tented Sept. 25, 1955 SHIRT PRQTECTOR Oswald V. Carper, McLean, Va.

Application February 2, 1954, Serial No. 407,770

8 Claims. (Cl. 206-7) My invention relates to a protective device for shirts, especially for protection of shirts when placed in a suitcase or grip for traveling.

It is well known that even carefully packed shirts become mussed, flattened as to collar, and even soiled, when packed in a suitcase and it becomes necessary to rearrange the contents of the suitcase from time to time.

It is an object of my invention to provide a shirt protector that will keep a shirt or shirts neat and clean when traveling, and at the same time carry such items as cuff links and studs without danger of their becoming lost in the suitcase.

A further object of my invention is to provide such a shirt protector that is inexpensive to manufacture, simple to use, and durable.

Further objects of the invention will become apparent in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views and wherein:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of one exemplification of the device;

Figure 2 shows a longitudinal view of the protector taken along line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 shows a section taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 shows the manner of inserting a shirt into the protector;

Figure 5 shows a protector made to accommodate two (2) shirts.

In the exemplification illustrated in Figures 1 through 4, the shirt protector is shown as comprising a shirt front protecting portion 1 which is of a length slightly longer than a shirt as folded by the laundry. Near one end is a housing 2 shaped generally to receive the collar of the shirt without crushing. The edges of the front protecting portion 1 are bent down at 3 and under the front portion to form flaps 4 to overlap each other at the back. The bends 3 are of more than 180 degrees so that the flaps 4 press against the under side of the front protecting portion when the protector is empty.

The device is made of any suitable material. Polyethylene is considered to be an ideal material but any material having similar characteristics may be used. It is desirable to have the material be translucent in order to facilitate identification of the shirt enclosed in the protector without turning back a flap or otherwise disturbing the shirt.

In use the shirt may be readily placed in the protector by laying the protector face down as seen in Figure 4, grasping the shirt by the back of the collar and thrusting the shirt into the protector from the bottom. As the shirt is thrust into the protector, as seen in Figure 4, the flaps are held open by the passage of the wrist of the operator until the shirt is in place.

If it is desired to have cuff links, tie clasp, or shirt studs accompany the shirt, it is only necessary to include such items in the hand as it inserts the shirt into the protector. As the shirt collar comes opposite the housing 2 the cuff links, etc., may be dropped into the housing where they will be held by the shirt without fear of loss.

Figure 5 shows a protector made to accommodate two shirts. The operation of this device is the same as that of the device of Figures 1 through 4, each shirt being inserted collar first.

It will be realized that various changes and modifications may be made in the device described above without departing from the scope of my invention as described in the appended claims:

I claim:

1. A shirt protector of a self-sustaining flexible resilient material comprising a flat front portion of a length greater than the folded shirt to be received therein and overlapping back portions bent backwardly from the sides of the front portion to press an enclosed shirt against said front portion, and an integral projecting boss forming a collar receiving housing near one end of said front body portion.

2. The device of claim 1 in which the material of the protector is polyethylene.

3. The device of claim 1 in which the back portions are bent through an arc of more than degrees to bring the back portions into engagement with the inside surface of the front portion of the protector when said protector is empty whereby a positive clamping force is exerted on a folded shirt placed in said protector.

4. The device of claim 1 in which the material of the protector is a molded plastic material.

5. A shirt protector of self-sustaining flexible resilient material for repeated use comprising a flat front panel, two overlapping back panels of the same length as said front panel and connected to the longitudinal edges of said front panel by folds of arcuate section and an integral boss forming a housing to enclose a shirt collar formed in said front panel spaced from one end thereof, said front panel being of such a length as to extend beyond the enclosed shirt at each end.

6. A shirt protector of self-sustaining flexible resilient material comprising a sheet of said material formed into a front panel and a pair of overlapping back panels folded back from the sides of said front panel, and at least one housing formed as an integral boss in and spaced from an end of said front panel and shaped to entirely enclose a shirt collar.

7. The shirt protector of claim in which a housing is formed adjacent each end of said front panel.

8. The shirt protector of claim 6 made of polyethylene.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

